Zones

[Greenfingeredste]

Hey guys I am seeing that you categorise bamboo's into what grows best in certain zones......How can I work this out for my climate...I live in the UK as im within 10 miles or so of the ocean we very rarely get frost and I have not seen snow for years....Lowest temp last winter went to -5/-6 but no worse......How do I find out what zones I am in?

[Iowaboo]

you want something like this:

[Greenfingeredste]

Im in zone 9a......I suppose as it is slightly warmer I have a wider choice of Bamboo to pick.....

[bambambooboo]

fyi that map shown above has a typo on 9a Fahrenheit

To the OP, be aware that zones are based upon average low temps, not absolute low temps, and it is not the averages but the extremes which damage.

My last garden was fairly solid 10b and I planted for that but though my current garden is 9b, due to a 100plus-year event right when I began here, I've become freeze-shy and so mostly plant for 9a. During that winter event, even my 10b old garden lost some stuff (not bamboo) yet I was surprised by what survived my new 9b location, including a sacred Bali though it was weakened and I lost it the following year to a lesser freeze.

I have very few zone 10 stuff planted here that I'm risking and so might experience top kill every so often on those but likely they'd survive below grade to put up new culms the following season. That actually might work out well for, say, the Hawaiian golden which is a loose clumper, so I'm okay with the weather kicking that growth back some. Also I'm hoping some of the more cold-sensitive stuff survives better as mature clumps so I just hope for decent weather for the next few years so they have a better chance to survive future freezing. The very tall stuff that might be damaged more frequently I've planted away from structures so they can be felled as required.

You probably can grow more varieties as you say but keep in mind that some are grown better in colder climes so you won't be able to grow those successfully. Also humidity might be a factor with some species, not just the temps. What I enjoy about the higher zones is that it allows for more clumpers so we have less maintenance issues. When I started with bamboo back in the 80s, I wasn't even aware of clumpers but had a runner which I kept potted because the person I'd split it with put hers in the ground before we knew about their spread or how to control them and it wound up in a neighbor's yard. I didn't learn about clumpers until the 90s so I started planting them in the ground and then I was hooked.

[Greenfingeredste]

fyi that map shown above has a typo on 9a Fahrenheit

To the OP, be aware that zones are based upon average low temps, not absolute low temps, and it is not the averages but the extremes which damage.

My last garden was fairly solid 10b and I planted for that but though my current garden is 9b, due to a 100plus-year event right when I began here, I've become freeze-shy and so mostly plant for 9a. During that winter event, even my 10b old garden lost some stuff (not bamboo) yet I was surprised by what survived my new 9b location, including a sacred Bali though it was weakened and I lost it the following year to a lesser freeze.

I have very few zone 10 stuff planted here that I'm risking and so might experience top kill every so often on those but likely they'd survive below grade to put up new culms the following season. That actually might work out well for, say, the Hawaiian golden which is a loose clumper, so I'm okay with the weather kicking that growth back some. Also I'm hoping some of the more cold-sensitive stuff survives better as mature clumps so I just hope for decent weather for the next few years so they have a better chance to survive future freezing. The very tall stuff that might be damaged more frequently I've planted away from structures so they can be felled as required.

You probably can grow more varieties as you say but keep in mind that some are grown better in colder climes so you won't be able to grow those successfully. Also humidity might be a factor with some species, not just the temps. What I enjoy about the higher zones is that it allows for more clumpers so we have less maintenance issues. When I started with bamboo back in the 80s, I wasn't even aware of clumpers but had a runner which I kept potted because the person I'd split it with put hers in the ground before we knew about their spread or how to control them and it wound up in a neighbor's yard. I didn't learn about clumpers until the 90s so I started planting them in the ground and then I was hooked.

Thank you for your response I was hoping to grow the taller bamboo's just need to find a decent list(with boo descriptions)on bamboos I can grow in my zone...I am looking into some timber bamboo but im not certain it would be possible in my zone

[bambambooboo]

Thank you for your response I was hoping to grow the taller bamboo's just need to find a decent list(with boo descriptions)on bamboos I can grow in my zone...I am looking into some timber bamboo but im not certain it would be possible in my zone

Well, there's this site http://www.bambooweb.info/SearchBambooPlants.php or you can search some of the commercial growers such as http://www.tropicalbamboo.com/find_bamboo.asp.

I'm never quite sure what someone means by "timber" bamboo though I've seen the term frequently. I guess it means that if it falls, it's big enough that you yell, timBERRRRRR in warning. Also I'm not at all familiar with runners so can only advise on clumpers which is what I grow.

Generally speaking, I'd search those sites for the larger boos for your 9a zone, of course, but I include some 8b stuff, more sure to survive a cold snap; some 9a stuff which might experience some burn on an off-cold winter and maybe even some 9b stuff that might experience some top kill every few years. I might experiment with a very limited number of 10a stuff, and not be too upset if I lost it. The only reason I experimented with the sacred Bali in this 9b zone is because I already had it in my previous garden. I would not have bought a new one to plant here.

[Greenfingeredste]

Ty for input...yeah its the larger bamboo's im intrested in....I don't want to go huge maybe 20feet max but one that can be felled with no consequences to jeopardise the plant

[bambambooboo]

Ty for input...yeah its the larger bamboo's im intrested in....I don't want to go huge maybe 20feet max but one that can be felled with no consequences to jeopardise the plant

The only clumper I know of that survives 20 degrees F while growing only 20 ft tall yet looks like a timber bamboo is Bambusa timberus var. Bonsai. I'd have an easier time finding shoes that fit.

The actual closest I can think of is nana which gets merely 25 ft by 3-4 inches but the low 20s can damage it.

I'm surprised to see a guy from Wales not using the metric system ie "20feet".

I don't grow runners so not very familiar with them but I'm pretty sure Moso isn't 20feet.

http://www.bambooweb.info/bb/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=6741

...I have ordered is Moso...

[Greenfingeredste]

Ty for input...yeah its the larger bamboo's im intrested in....I don't want to go huge maybe 20feet max but one that can be felled with no consequences to jeopardise the plant

The only clumper I know of that survives 20 degrees F while growing only 20 ft tall yet looks like a timber bamboo is Bambusa timberus var. Bonsai. I'd have an easier time finding shoes that fit.

The actual closest I can think of is nana which gets merely 25 ft by 3-4 inches but the low 20s can damage it.

I'm surprised to see a guy from Wales not using the metric system ie "20feet".

I don't grow runners so not very familiar with them but I'm pretty sure Moso isn't 20feet.

http://www.bambooweb.info/bb/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=6741

...I have ordered is Moso...

Again thankyou for the input.....The Moso seeds arrived and are now soaking....As the bamboo you talk about I will have a look into it and see what is available.

[bambambooboo]

Here's the nana. But as I mentioned, you might have some top kill every few years or if lucky, once established, just some burn in 9a's coldest years.

[Greenfingeredste]

That is a fine looking boo....How long do they take to establish?

[bambambooboo]

From seed I've no idea. I started with one culm about 1/4 to 1/2 inch diameter and maybe 12 ft tall. Guessing, was a few years back, summer 2009 I think. Then in winter 2009/10 this new garden experienced a 100-year freeze event. Got down to the low 20s. I had two culms by then. If I remember right I lost one to top kill but the other burned (even after covering with a sheet) and lost I think all or most of its leaves but leafed out again the following summer and produced new, sized up culms.

I let that grow a year and then separated a two-culm division I think in late winter/early spring 2012 and then more dividing in 2013. Currently I've 4 clumps, a single, two doubles and the original with three culms, generally around 1 1/2" diameter with the smallest at about 1/2 and the largest at about 1 3/4". They like a lot of water when divided, otherwise they seem fairly drought tolerant. The original plant I only water if it's gone for a long time without rain. The newest divisions start to curl if they don't get water at least twice weekly when it gets hot as it does now. And last year's division is fine, again, just watering if we go a long spell without rain and probably I don't need to do even that but I want to encourage a good strong growth this season.

[Greenfingeredste]

From seed I've no idea. I started with one culm about 1/4 to 1/2 inch diameter and maybe 12 ft tall. Guessing, was a few years back, summer 2009 I think. Then in winter 2009/10 this new garden experienced a 100-year freeze event. Got down to the low 20s. I had two culms by then. If I remember right I lost one to top kill but the other burned (even after covering with a sheet) and lost I think all or most of its leaves but leafed out again the following summer and produced new, sized up culms.

I let that grow a year and then separated a two-culm division I think in late winter/early spring 2012 and then more dividing in 2013. Currently I've 4 clumps, a single, two doubles and the original with three culms, generally around 1 1/2" diameter with the smallest at about 1/2 and the largest at about 1 3/4". They like a lot of water when divided, otherwise they seem fairly drought tolerant. The original plant I only water if it's gone for a long time without rain. The newest divisions start to curl if they don't get water at least twice weekly when it gets hot as it does now. And last year's division is fine, again, just watering if we go a long spell without rain and probably I don't need to do even that but I want to encourage a good strong growth this season.

Fascinating .....As im going from seed im guessing I'll be waiting at least 5 years to get any decent growth